When All The Music Dies
by xoxonessie
Summary: Set after the "Enemies" episodes  8x08&09 . "We sing because we can't talk anymore" - Kristin Chenoweth. Tony and Ziva have never been good with words. Maybe a song is what they need? Lyrics from "Marry Me" by Train.


Disclaimer: As surprising as it may seem, I don't own anything except from that wild imagination of mine.

Spoilers: Up to 8x09 _"Enemies Domestic"_.

Summary: Set after the _"Enemies"_ episodes (8x08&09). _"We sing because we can't talk anymore" - Kristin Chenoweth._ Tony and Ziva have never been good with words. Maybe a song is what they need?

_**When all the music dies**_

"I've got an idea. Don't move." he suddenly announced putting on his classic DiNozzo smile before disappearing in the crowded space between them and the stage at the bottom of the bar.

Ziva couldn't even remember how they had gotten there in the first place, it had been a long and rather dull case; they had spent the last two days following leads that basically led nowhere. They had somehow ended up in that bar somewhere in downtown Washington, waiting for nothing in particular but something that would give them a chance not to get "deep sixed" by their boss the moment they got back to NCIS headquarters.

She tried to follow her partner with her eyes but he was moving fast and there were far too many people in the tiny bar to see anything. So she was left by herself near the main counter, wondering what it was he was plotting and seriously contemplating getting a drink - one drink couldn't hurt, nobody would know and it would certainly help her get rid of some boredom she was sure she was going to die from if they didn't find anything soon.

Not that working with Tony could really be defined as boring. She had to admit she quite liked it in fact. He could be really annoying at times but at least he knew how to lighten the mood when Ziva's nerves were threatening to crack. He had been quite patient with this whole case and with her over the past few days, much to Ziva's surprise. He had made jokes whenever they hit a dead end, most of them being puns Ziva didn't always understand, he had made so many movie references that Ziva wondered if he hadn't made up some of them for the sake of the argument and he had even let her drive once – only once though: apparently her driving hadn't improved as much as she thought it had and Tony still thought it was safer for both of them if her hands didn't come close to the steering wheel again unless it was absolutely necessary… She personally thought he was being overdramatic over the whole thing but decided against speaking her mind when she realized that it would only add to the tension triggered by this neverending case. And they certainly didn't need that.

They made small talk in the car at times, he asked her if she had heard from her father ever since he had returned to Israel; she asked him if he had kept in touch with his, but these conversations were short lived since neither of them were particularly eager to expand on the subject.

It had been a few weeks since Eli had made his big return into Ziva's life. She still was not sure about how she felt about that, let alone if she was ready to discuss it with Tony. He had not pushed her, he never did when it came to her relationship with Eli. He knew better. He knew that it was a deep wound that still needed time to heal and that it was probably only the tip of the iceberg. One day, she will tell him….maybe… if she thought she really had to. She did not want to burden him with the ghosts of her past. She did not want to see the pity in his eyes, she would not be able to stand it.

She knew she couldn't fool him though, he seemed to have developed this strange ability to read her like an open book when he wanted to. Or had it been there from the start? Did it mean that she had become softer, more vulnerable? For some reason, she still had difficulties to accept the fact that he could know when she was fine and when she was not just by looking at her. But at the same time, she was glad that there was one person on Earth who knew her well enough to just _know_ when she needed to be alone or when she needed company.

Tony and she had gotten closer over the years, there was no denying that. Despite everything they had gone through, they had somehow reached a place where they were comfortable with each other without forcing it or without pretending. Yes, it was a comfortable place they were in at the moment, it was not perfect and a lot of things still had to be resolved but at least they were able to be around each other in a friendly, not-so-awkward kind of way. And considering the events of the past few years, it could have been much worse.

Ziva was lost in her thoughts when the lights in the main room went dimmer and the bright lights on the stage were switched on. The slow movement of the crowd seemed to indicate that someone was going to get on the stage and demonstrate some hidden talent he or she possessed. It was the kind of place where you could get on the stage and make your own show, getting your own 15 minutes of fame before going back to your regular life. She didn't really see the point of that - especially since the last 5 people to invade the stage were definitely not going to make a living from their "talent" anytime soon – but it was quite a pleasant way to end a stressful day nevertheless. As the audience turned their attention to the stage, she tried to catch a glimpse of her partner who had yet to return. Where the hell had he gone? She swore to herself that if she found him hitting on some blonde in a corner, she would not be held responsible for her actions…

She let her gaze wander across the room and almost choked on her own gasp of shock when she saw him sitting on a stool in the middle of the stage, a guitar in his hands and a strange expression on his face.

She couldn't believe it. What was he doing? What game was he playing now? He'd better have a good reason to do that becau- she stopped thinking the moment the first note escaped the guitar and reached her ears. Ziva took a step closer to the stage, shock and annoyance soon replaced by a mix of amazement and curiosity that she wasn't able to control, and she stood there, motionless, as her partner started to sing.

"_Forever can never be long enough for me  
>Feel like I've had long enough with you<br>Forget the world now we won't let them see  
>But there's one thing left to do"<em>

She was mesmerized. She could barely form a coherent thought in her mind. She spotted an empty chair a few feet away, closer to the stage. She slowly made her way to the chair and let herself fall into it, her eyes never leaving her partner. She didn't think she had ever seen him so concentrated on something before, he was frowning slightly, probably blinded by the lights a little, his eyes focused on his fingers as they softly plucked at each string of the guitar, but there was a sort of peace on his face that she hadn't seen in a while.

"_Now that the weight has lifted  
>Love has surely shifted my way<br>Marry Me  
>Today and every day<br>Marry Me  
>If I ever get the nerve to say<br>Hello in this cafe  
>Say you will<br>Mm-hmm  
>Say you will<br>Mm-hmm"_

Tony raised his head and his eyes met Ziva's. Her head was slightly tilted on one side, her frowning brow asking a silent question as her eyes were shining with curiosity and wonder. The smile on his face grew larger as he saw her smile back. A tiny, almost shy smile that he hadn't seen very often but that gave her such an endearing look that he wished he could freeze the picture and keep it in his memory forever. His heart was beating so fast in his chest it almost hurt. Almost. Because the look on his partner's face had a numbing effect on whatever pain he was supposed to feel at the moment. He was singing about love, about not getting the nerve to tell her everything he had on his heart and he just hoped Ziva would know how to read in between the lines, letting him tell her in a song all that he couldn't tell her with words.

Words had a tendency to get in their way every time they tried to make some progress in this relationship of theirs. Words were never their thing. They were better with meaningful innuendos and silent conversations. They said much more with their eyes than with actual words. "_You say you don't wanna talk about it but your eyes won't shut up"_. That's how it was. It was their thing. Their world. Them. He was getting slightly nervous but his smile and Ziva's eyes never leaving his face, he resumed his singing.

"_Together can never be close enough for me  
>Feel like I am close enough to you<br>You'll wear white and I'll wear out the words I love you  
>And you're beautiful" <em>

He raised his head again and instinctively looked at Ziva who was all of a sudden feeling very grateful for the darkness of the room as her cheeks slowly turned into a darker shade of pink. His words, every single one, touched her in a way they shouldn't have, making something in her stomach flutter. She believed Americans called that flies. Wait. Not flies… dragonflies?... No. Butterflies. _Butterflies_. A beautiful image for such an incommoding feeling. She felt exposed, vulnerable and ridiculously shy. She felt like a teenage girl. Except she wasn't even sure she had ever felt like that in her teenage years. But she had to admit, the feeling wasn't so bad after all.

"_Now that the wait is over  
>And love and has finally shown her my way<br>Marry me  
>Today and every day<br>Marry me  
>If I ever get the nerve to say hello in this cafe<br>Say you will  
>Mm-hmm<br>Say you will  
>Mm-hmm"<em>

The room had disappeared, the crowd had vanished into thin air, the tension from the case, the tiredness, the boredom, the useless interviews and the pointless leads, everything was gone. It was him and her. Tony and Ziva. Staring into each other's eyes, into each other's souls once again. The world could have stopped spinning for all they knew, they were too engrossed into each other to notice. The lyrics of the song penetrated their hearts and their souls, reaching them in a way that neither of them had expected. Missed moments and wasted opportunities, too many things left unsaid, too many secrets that they had almost let ruin everything just because neither of them had ever had the nerve to make a move. And now their eyes spoke of betrayal, pain, forgiveness, regrets, promises and hope. Love.

"_Promise me  
>You'll always be<br>Happy by my side.  
>I promise to<br>Sing to you  
>When all the music dies"<em>

She smiled as she remembered her own words "_You have always had my back"._ He had. He still was. What was an innocent song to the rest of the people in the room was a genuine promise to her. A promise she knew he would keep no matter what.

"_And marry me  
><em>_Today and everyday  
>Marry me<br>If I ever get the nerve to say hello in this cafe  
>Say you will<br>Mm-hmm  
>Say you will<br>Marry me  
>Mm-hmm"<em>

He finished the song his green eyes staring in her chocolate ones and stayed like that a little longer than necessary before the reality came crashing down on them both in the form of applause and cheering from the crowd. Ziva laughed softly as Tony bowed down to his audience and winked at her before leaving the stage. And she had thought she needed a drink before…


End file.
